Archive for the 'Blu-ray Reviews' Category
June 3rd, 2020 by Brandon Peters
As I have been doing lately with some Blu-ray debuts or newly minted transfers, here are more screen captures to tell the tale of the debut of 1980’s Urban Cowboy on the format. Below you’ll find 20 screen shots from this release. Paramount’s Blu-ray of the film starring John Travolta and Debra Winger is available now (Released June 2nd). Take a look through the pictures, read my full review by CLICKING HERE, and then order yourself a copy of this terrific release at the bottom of the page!
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. Continue reading ‘SCREENCAPS: Urban Cowboy – 40th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray Review)’
June 3rd, 2020 by Brandon Peters
Urban Cowboy‘s Blu-ray release feels like an awfully long time coming. Sure, the film hasn’t stuck in the conversation as well as other’s in Travolta’s career be it the iconic masterpiece Saturday Night Fever or the reappraisal and film nerd appreciation of Brian DePalma’s Blow Out. The 1980 mechanical bull riding drama set to country music is one of the most essential films in his entire career, not just his break out run. It was almost what Saturday Night Fever was for country music and remained his last hit and respected film for quite some time. You may remember (or not), that when I had my Blu-ray Wishlist articles as a weekly instead of yearly piece, Urban Cowboy was one of the first additions. That was over six years ago, which seems pretty crazy. Luckily it hit a milestone and is coming to the format with some bonus features attached. Surprisingly, this one didn’t get put with the Paramount Presents label, but that’s no bother. Its welcome any way they’d like to deliver. Continue reading ‘Urban Cowboy – 40th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray Review)’
June 1st, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
It’s the most fun you’ll ever have being scared! From showrunner Greg Nicotero (The Walking Dead) comes a new anthology horror series inspired by George A. Romero’s iconic 1982 classic film. A comic book comes to life in twelve chilling tales told across six episodes featuring stories by Joe Hill (NOS4A2), Joe Lansdale (Bubba Ho-Tep), Josh Malerman (Bird Box) and more. Haunted dollhouses, werewolves, mischievous creatures, villainous trick-or-treaters and the undead are just a few things you’ll see. You never know what will be on the next page… Continue reading ‘Creepshow: Season 1 (Blu-ray Review)’
May 31st, 2020 by Aaron Neuwirth
The initial announcement of a Watchmen television series was intriguing to hear. Arriving ten years after Zack Snyder’s (pretty good) attempt to bring the groundbreaking graphic novel series from creators Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons to life, would HBO be able to deliver the deluxe treatment in a manner similar to what Game of Thrones was able to accomplish? Would it be the novel again, but stretched out into a weekly series? Was the plan to take the name ‘Watchmen’ and do something else entirely? As it turns out, creator Damon Lindelof had some bold plans up his sleeves – a tangential sequel series designed to carry on many of the ideas presented in the original graphic novel, but continue going down that rabbit hole in a manner fit for today’s society. The result was one of the best self-contained seasons of television I can recall seeing in recent years. Now you can enjoy the whole season and more in this complete package. Continue reading ‘Watchmen: Season 1 (Blu-ray Review)’
May 28th, 2020 by Brandon Peters
One of the best archival efforts going on with Scream Factory the past year has been their Universal Horror Collection series. Now hitting Volume 5, with Volume 6 already announced, they are highlighting and saving four horror titles from the Universal vaults that aren’t quite as well known as the standard Classic Monsters fare. Usually there will be a theme to it, or sometimes it feels a film would be picked up because of an actor associated with horror. This fifth volume feels like a fresh new lot as it showcases a more ape/jungle type theme with the films involved. A closer look finds a standalone film that closely relates to a trilogy within the set. The “Cheena, The Ape Woman” films all are included here. Not familiar with them, I’m excited to be introduced. One of them has never been on DVD or Blu-ray before and the others have only just recently had Universal DVDs in the last 5 years, or been subject to those bargain bin and 100-Sci Fi Films collections which aren’t known for having the best of transfers. You can pre-order the set to have when it becomes available on June 16th! Continue reading ‘Universal Horror Collection: Volume 5 (Blu-ray Review)’
May 28th, 2020 by Brandon Peters
CBS has decided that its going all in with the Star Trek game when it comes to their streaming channel CBS All Access. The streaming platform launched with the debut of Star Trek: Discovery (Which is heading into its third season) and then added Star Trek: Picard the following year. We will soon see even more series with The Lower Decks and the recently announced Strange New Worlds. For Discovery, in between the seasons and such, they’ve had this little short films or interludes that tie in and act as little excursions called Short Treks. They follow characters in the series or sometimes not, just relative to places or events going on. They’ve been plenty fun and pretty well regarded. Short Treks has been an exclusive to CBS All Access until now, as Star Trek fans want to collect, so they are bringing brought to Blu-ray (Shame, no 4K, but this keeps in line with the Discovery releases). You can pre-order to have when it arrives June 2nd! Continue reading ‘Star Trek: Short Treks (Blu-ray Review)’
May 27th, 2020 by Brandon Peters
Sonic the Hedgehog made its awareness even more well known thanks to online fan whining and pouting about the look of the character after the first trailer. This lead to the movie being pulled and set for a later date in order to improve the animation. And I’ll agree, it did look better, but old and animation or new, the movie itself was still going to be the same despite that irrelevant detail getting a fix. And the film got in and made itself some money just in time before theaters began closing their doors. The film also received an advanced digital release upon that shift in movie watching climate, but now is available on 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray to own (Released on May 19th). You can relive or check out for the first time all the speedy animated hedgehog versus crazy 90s-like Jim Carrey antics paired with James Marsden smolder when you order it from the paid Amazon Associate link below. Thanks in advance to Lt. Grammar Police for the gripes. Continue reading ‘Sonic The Hedgehog (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)’
May 27th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
In this visually arresting action drama from acclaimed director Johnnie To (Mad Detective, Election), legendary Judo fighter Szeto Bo (Louis Koo; Flash Point, The Legend of Zu) unexpectedly gave up the sport and now lives the life of an alcoholic gambler who runs a pub. However, cocky Judo newcomer Tony (Aaron Kwok) wants to challenge him, while old foe Kong (Tony Leung Ka Fai, Ashes of Time) demands Szeto to finish the match that never took place, Soon Szeto’s pub becomes the ultimate arena where the greatest Judo fighters challenge one another. Filled with brutal, no-holds-barred Judo fight scenes, Throw Down is director To’s ultra-stylish homage to the great Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, and is an emotional tale of one man’s determination to rediscover himself and win at all costs. The Masters of Cinema Series is proud to present Throw Down in its UK debut from a 4K restoration. Continue reading ‘Throw Down [Masters of Cinema] (Blu-ray Review)’
May 26th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
In The Postcard Killings, based on the James Patterson and Liza Marklund #1 New York Times bestselling novel, NY Detective Jacob Kanon’s (Jeffery Dean Morgan) world is destroyed when his daughter and son-in-law are brutally murdered in London. Unable to sit idly by and do nothing, Jacob travels to London get the answers he needs. As he learns of similar heinous murders happening across Europe – each preceded by a postcard sent to a local journalist – Jacob is in a race against time to stop the killings and find justice for his little girl. Continue reading ‘The Postcard Killings (Blu-ray Review)’
May 25th, 2020 by Brandon Peters
I’ve been a fan of Leigh Whannell (And James Wan) since the the original Saw put them on the map. Long have I admired how those can make five dollars look like 80 million dollars on the screen. The two, in both their respective directing careers have showcase such smaller film that have larger impacts and experiences. Heck, just the other day, Forbes’ Scott Mendelson pointed out with Aquaman that sure its an expensive movie, but he’s shocked it wasn’t even more expensive to an ungodly degree. Whannell isn’t quite to overstuffed budgeted blockbuster tentpoles yet, but he certainly is on track. His previous film, Upgrade, was my favorite film of 2018. So, it was with great excitement when not only did I hear he was directing a new Invisible Man feature, but that he was teaming with Blumhouse for it. That’s about as perfect a marriage as can be. And perfect it was. You’ll be able to check out this modern horror masterpiece in the finest 4K presentation when it arrives on May 26th! Continue reading ‘The Invisible Man (2020) (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)’
May 23rd, 2020 by Adam Toroni-Byrne
This spring has been representative of two things for me. One is that, for better or worse, being stuck in shelter-in-place has been helpful in some ways and hurtful in others. On a lighter note, two is that we have been blessed with so many fantastic catalog titles coming out to keep us happy at home. Jaws is one such release, coming out on 4K Blu-ray (finally) in celebration of its 45th anniversary. The movie is just as you remember it being – tense, well crafted, slyly funny, and iconic. The new edition will certainly make the film’s fans very happy! Without further ado, here’s all you need to know about the Jaws 45th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray!
Continue reading ‘Jaws (45th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray Review)’
May 23rd, 2020 by Brandon Peters
As I’ve been doing more of recently, this article will be providing screen capture comparisons for a new edition of a title previously available on Blu-ray. For this article we’ll be looking at Escape From L.A. Paramount released a bare bones edition back in 2010 and on May 26, Scream Factory will be putting out a brand new Collector’s Edition of it. This new version boasts a new 4K transfer from the original camera negative. This piece will only be screenshot comparisons of the two. For a full review of the Collector’s Edition, you see what I had to say by CLICKING HERE. Which one do you think sports a more friendly image to your eyes? Let me know down in the comments. Order links are available for both at the bottom!
. Continue reading ‘Escape From L.A. – 2010 Paramount Edition VS 2020 Scream Factory Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray Review)’
May 23rd, 2020 by Brandon Peters
Shout!/Scream Factory is damn close to achieving their goal of releasing every John Carpenter film under their banner on Blu-ray. With the release of Escape From L.A. – Collector’s Edition, that leaves only Dark Star, Christine, Ghosts of Mars, The Ward, and the 2 Masters Of Horror features Cigarette Burns and Pro-Life to get the treatment. Personally, I would be most tickled if they released a collection of his college short films as a release. Escape From L.A. was bound to be with Scream Factory once they started doing Paramount titles. Unfortunately, there is no John Carpenter or Kurt Russell inclusion on the new bonus features. Still, we are given plenty of new interviews and a brand new 4K transfer from the original negative. While most love the original, many are not so hot on its west coast follow up. But, maybe its time for a revisit and reassessment 24 years later. It arrives on Blu-ray May 26th, and you can pre-order a copy using the Amazon Associates link below.
Continue reading ‘Escape From L.A. – Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray Review)’
May 21st, 2020 by Brandon Peters
Earlier this month, HBO premiered the documentary focused on legendary Hollywood icon Natalie Wood (Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind), whose story is one met with a tragic end. In a bit of a company aligning things together and timing them right, Warner Archive Collection is releasing Inside Daisy Clover, a film that gave Wood a real meaty, Oscar worthy role that was unfortunately maligned and unappreciated when it came out due to some dated politics of the era. However, it still nabbed Natalie Wood a Best Actress nomination at the Golden Globes and the film itself had 3 Academy Award nominations (Including Ruth Gordon for Best Supporting Actress). In the years since, it had found some steam and appreciation on VHS and television airing for being a film that had a positive representation (For its time) for the gay community in that of Robert Redford’s character. You can check out the film, which became available on May 12, by using the Amazon Associates paid link after the review.
Continue reading ‘Inside Daisy Clover (Blu-ray Review)’
May 21st, 2020 by Brandon Peters
Warner Archive Collection continues to thrill and excite fans of class cinema and genre cinema throughout the year with beautiful restorations and affordable prices. For June, they are exciting both crowds at the same time with one single release in 1933’s The Mystery Of The Wax Museum. Another film from directing legend Michael Curtiz, it was previously available only in SD as a bonus feature on the Blu-ray release for the Vincent Price-starring House of Wax. Now, by itself it has been released with a brand new restoration (House Of Wax is getting a new release, too next month). It also features some brand new bonus material that includes an interview with the iconic Fay Wray’s daughter. Once thought to a be a film lost forever, it now has been brought up to wonderfully restored standards by by the UCLA Film & Television Archive and can delight collector’s of every corner. The film was released on May 12, and is available now using the paid Amazon Associate’s link following the review.
Continue reading ‘The Mystery Of The Wax Museum (Blu-ray Review)’
May 20th, 2020 by Brandon Peters
On January 30th of this year, Michael Schur’s The Good Place came to its natural conclusion. Schur may not be a household name, but the guy is responsible as a writer or producer for unarguably some of the best television comedy of the last decade. While his name might not ring a bell, perhaps The Office, Master of None, Parks and Recreation or Brooklyn Nine-Nine ring a bell? And if you’ve not indulged in those, well you may want to start taking a gander. Of all his creations and efforts, The Good Place might just be he’s crowning jewel. More than character, more than comedy, its a bit of discovery, mystery and a full on philosophical exploration of a good many things regarding the human life and afterlife. The great people at Shout! Factory are doing us all a good solid and making sure this series gets its rightful do on Blu-ray instead of finding itself on a lame DVD or sentenced to be found on streaming services only. You’ll be able to pick up their complete series set complete with some bonus features and all episodes when it arrives on May 19th! Continue reading ‘The Good Place: The Complete Series (Blu-ray Review)’
May 18th, 2020 by Gerard Iribe
A haunting horror fairytale set against the backdrop of Mexico’s devastating drug wars. Tigers Are Not Afraid follows a group of orphaned children, armed with three magical wishes, running from the ghosts that haunt them and the cartel that murdered their parents. Filmmaker Issa Lopez creates a world that recalls the early films of Guillermo del Toro, imbued with her own gritty urban spin on magical realism to conjure a wholly unique experience that audiences will not soon forget. Continue reading ‘Tigers Are Not Afraid (Blu-ray Review)’
May 16th, 2020 by Peter Paras
Katie Holmes is stuck at home with a possibly possessed doll; as are the rest of us, if we’re so inclined to check out the sequel to 2016’s surprise horror hit The Boy. Brahms: The Boy II was released about a month before the global pandemic would keep nearly all humans on planet earth indoors. Some would fill their time with cute, adorable fare like Nintendo’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Others swung the other way, with more horrific forms of entertainment. In this era, mileage will vary on wanting to intentionally be trapped for nearly ninety minutes with Annabelle’s better-dressed spiritual sibling. I have kept up with the thrills (Contagion really holds up!). So does this Blu-ray release have inventive new ways to make us uncomfortable spending time looking into the dead-eyed stare of a creepy porcelain boy? Review after the jump.
Continue reading ‘Brahms: The Boy II (Blu-ray review)’
